Using the internet to find information for a research paper can be handy, if you know what to look for and where. If you're not sure, it can also be very frustrating. Here are some tips to help you evaluate information. There is no one responsible to check the information on the internet for accuracy or quality as there is for most other information outlets. That means that anyone can publish anything they want online. As a writer or researcher, you will have to be extra careful when choosing online sources. Georgetown University Library provides these guidelines for evaluating web sources:
Follow these guidelines when using resources from the Web:
- Be very critical of any information you find on the Web and carefully examine each site.
- Web pages are susceptible to both accidental and deliberate alteration, and may move or disappear with no notice.
- Print out or download all pages you plan to use in your research so that your bibliography will be complete and accurate.
- Are you sure the Web is where you want to be? It may take an hour to find the answer to a question on the Web that would take a Reference Librarian two minutes to find. When in doubt, ask a Librarian!
- Is the name of the author/creator on the page?
- Are his/her credentials listed (occupation, years of experience, position or education)?
- Is there contact information, such as an email address, somewhere on the page?
- Is there a link to a homepage?
- If not stated, what do you think is the purpose of the site? Is the purpose to:
- Inform or Teach?
- Explain or Enlighten?
- Persuade?
- Sell a Product?
- Is the information covered fact, opinion, or propaganda?
- Is the author's point-of-view objective and impartial?
- Is the language free of emotion-rousing words and bias?
- Are the sources for factual information clearly listed so that the information can be verified?
- Can you verify any of the information in independent sources or from your own knowledge?
- Has the information been reviewed or refereed?
Reliability and Credibility
- Does the information appear to be valid and well-researched, or is it unsupported by evidence?
- Are quotes and other strong assertions backed by sources that you could check through other means?
- Is there a non-Web equivalent of this material that would provide a way of verifying its legitimacy?
- If timeliness of the information is important, is it kept up-to-date?
- Is there an indication of when the site was last updated?
- Are links related to the topic and useful to the purpose of the site?
- Are links still current, or have they become dead ends?
- Are the links evaluated or annotated in any way?
The original version of this guide is much more detailed. Follow the link if you'd like to see it all.
University of Nevada Reno's online library This provides databases for anything you can imagine.
Elko County Library This is our local public library and they have many helpful links and programs.
Consumer Health Complete all type of info concerning health and the Health industry
ERIC Education Resource Information Center has 1.5 million items relating to education.
Learning Express many resources for all things "high school"
EBSCO Database (online magazines and journals plus!)
ABC-CLIO go here for Government, US History, World History and Geography
World book Online is like an online encyclopedia. You can search for almost anything and it will find general information and images. Worldbook has several levels of information, you will probably find what you need in the student, advanced or timelines sections. (The others are meant for elementary school kids.) You will need to create a student account but its easy, free and a reliable, authoritative source and very easy to cite for your bibliography.
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